Collapsible blackboard and easel



March 1 1938. E. s. GANDRUD 2,109,723

COLLAPSIBLE BLACKBOARD AND EASEL Filed Jan. l6, 1957 2 Sheets-Sheet l March 1, 1938. E. s. GANDRUD CQLLAPSIBLE BLACKBOARD AND EA SBL Filed Jan. 16, 1957 0. m/ a 5Z2 \\\\7 n 9 w h Patented Mar. 1, 1938 NI ED STATES PATENTOFFlCE Ebenhard S. Gandrud, Pipestone, Minn. Application January 16, 1937, Serial No. 120,954

4 Claims.

. My invention provides a collapsible or knockdown structure capable of being folded into small space and quickly and easily set up for use when desired. This device, while capable of various 5 uses, is herein designated as a collapsible blackboard and easel. It is primarily designed for use by persons who give illustrative lectures or demonstrations on various subjects where a blackboard surface is required or where a convenient L easel is desired.

A preferred form of the device is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein like characters indicate like parts throughout the several views. 1

Referring to the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a front elevation with some parts broken away, showing the complete device;

Fig. 2 is a side or edge elevation of the device, a portion of the supporting stand being broken away;

Fig. 3 is a rear elevation of the board or upper portion of the device, some parts being broken away; and

Figs. 4, 5, 6, and '7 are sections taken respectively on the lines 4-4, 5-5, B6, and 'l-'| of Fig. 3.

The body of the easel or board that makes up the back for the blackboard is made up of slats 8, preferably of wood made rectangular in cross section and adapted, when placed edge to edge in a common plane, to afford a smooth board-like surface. These slats 8 are cemented or otherwise secured on a binding sheet 9 of aflexible material such as canvas or similar fabric that serves as a means for hingedly connecting the slats. Adjacent to the upper edge of the uppermost slat 8 is a somewhat heavier top rail I0, also preferably of wood. As best shown in Fig. 6, the canvas binding sheet 9 is brought over and around the rail in and is extended down to the uppermost rail 8, so that the said upper rail 8 and the rail H) are bound together and the one held against movement in respect to the other. At its lower edge the canvas sheet 9 is secured to a lower rail which, as shown, is made up of two rigidly connected wooden sections H and I2.

Extended over the binding sheet 9 is another sheet E3 of flexible material such as canvas, and the outer face of which is painted or coated with blackboard-forming paint or similar coating, to afford the surface of the blackboard upon which characters or images may be marked with chalk and thereafter erased. This blackboard-forming sheet l3 and its upper edge is securely attached to the top rail ID by suitable means such as a wooden cleat l4 and screws or nails [5. The lower edge of the sheet I3 is attached to the section H of the bottom rail and to the lower portion of the binding sheet 9. As shown, this latter noted attachment is made by the useof, a ,5 chalk rail i5, preferably a grooved Wooden strip, thus secured by suitable means, such as screws I! passed through the elements 9, H and I3 and passed into the rail. IS. The vertical length of the sheet I3 is such that it will be stretched taut l in a smooth condition when the back support, made up of the slats,,is turned into fiat condition.

To hold the slats 8 in their flattened-out condition and thesheets 9 and I3 stretched taut, there is'providecl a pairof lock bars 18. As shown, the left-hand bar l8 at its lowerend is pivoted to the lowermost slat: 8 bya screw 49', and its free upper edgeis engageable with, a segmental lock groove 20, formed in the under surface of the top rail l9;'and the right-hand bar l8 at its upper end is pivoted to the top slat 8 by a screw 2|, or the like, and its free lower end'is engageable with a segmental lock 22 formed in the top of the bottom rail section 12.

When the device is set up, as shown in the drawings, the lock bars l8 will lie closely against the backs of the slats, and the slats 8 will be held in true surface alignment to afford a smooth and flat surface, against which the blackboard sheet will be stretched and tightly held.

It will be noted that the pivoted lower end of the left-hand lock bar [8 works in a notch 20' formed in the lower rail I2 and that the pivoted upper end of the right-hand lock bar I8 works in a notch 22' formed in the top rail Ill. The engagement of the pivoted lower end of the left hand lock b'ar i8 serves to lock the bottom rail and lowermost slat 8 against hinge-like move ment, and the engagement of the upper end of the right-hand lock bar notch 22 force the connection between the top rail and uppermost slat.

As a convenient support for holding the easel with the blackboard in position for use, I provide a suitable column-like stand, the upper portion of which is applied to the easel in a novel way, andthe lower portion of which may be of any suitable construction for engagement with the floor but should be a foldable struc-. ture. This supporting column, as shown, is made up of telescopically connected sections 23, 24, and 25, adaptedto be held in extended adjustments by screws or clamps 26 and 21. The lower section 25, as shown, is provided at its lower end with lugs 28 that are connected by links 29 to legs 30, the upper ends of which latter are pivoted to lugs of a collar 3|, slidably mounted on the said section 25. The standard or supporting column, made up of the above noted elements 23 to 3| inclusive, is adapted to be folded or telescoped into a length, represented approximately by the length of the section 25, and which length adapts the folded stand to be contained within the rolled-up easel and blackboard.

The stand section 23 has a flattened head 32 at its upper end that is: engageable with a notch 33 formed in the central portion of the under edge of the top rail Ill. The stand section 24 is adapted to be placed with a notch 34, formed in the central portion of the rail section l2, and to be there held by turn button 35, which, as shown, is pivoted to the rail section I2. The ease with which the easel and blackboard can be set up and collapsed, and rolled and stored in a small space, with the stand rolled or contained within or attached to the roll, is obvious from the foregoing statements.

The uses to which the device may be put are also thought to have been made clear and, in fact, to be quite obvious. Not only can the device be used as a blackboard for demonstrating purposes, but the easel can be used as a support for demonstrating sheets and the like, placed over the same, or to support large pictures placed on the easel.

The term blackboard or blackboard-forming surface is used in a liberal sense, not necessarily indicating a perfectly black surface, but a surface upon which, by the use of chalk or the like, marks may be madeand the marks thereafter erased.

What I claim is:

1. In a device of the kind described, a foldable back-forming board made up of slats attached at one edge to a flexible binding sheet, a flexible blackboard forming sheet loosely applied over said binding sheet at its main body portion but attached to upper and lower portions of said foldable board and of such length that it will be stretched taut when said board is in flat condition, and a support for holding said board in said flat formation.

2. In a device of the kind described, a foldable back-forming board made up of slats attached at one side to a flexible binding sheet, upper and lower rails attached to the upper and lower slats and to upper and lower portions of said binding sheet, a flexible blackboard forming sheet attached to said upper and lower rails and engageable with said binding sheet and of such length that it will be stretched taut against said binding sheet when said board is in flat condition, and a support engageable with said upper and lower rails to hold said board in flat condition.

3. The structure defined in claim 1 in which said support is a pedestal, and at each side of said pedestal a lock bar operative between upper and lower portions of the board to hold the same in flat condition and the blackboard forming sheet stretched against said binding sheet.

4. The structure defined in claim 2 in which said support includes a pedestal extended between said upper and lower rails and on each side thereof a lock bar pivoted to one of said rails and engageable with the other rail to hold said board in flat condition and said blackboard forming sheet stretched taut against said binding sheet.

EBENHARD S. GANDRUD. 

